The Mote-Boca Grande Partnership

With the opening of the new Mote Marine office comes added enrichment to the Island. In an effort to provide up-to-date information about red tide impacts on our local beaches, Mote Marine is now keeping us all updated and informed. The Beach Conditions Report covers 26 beaches along Florida’s Gulf Coast from the Panhandle south to Lee County. Reports, provided by specially trained observers, are updated twice daily at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. 365 days a year. Each report is time stamped so that the public knows when it was last updated. Boca Grande is the historical site of the tarpon fishery, the center of tarpon reproduction, and a way-station for tarpon that make up the fishery for much of the region. Charlotte Harbor is also Mote Marine Laboratory’s historical home. In January 2013, Mote’s regional presence grew as it opened a new satellite office in Boca Grande to help engage the community and region in tarpon and other marine research undertaken by Mote in Charlotte Harbor and Southwest Florida.